Procession honors Kendrick Castillo at memorial service in Highlands Ranch

Hundreds of people, including drivers of more than 200 Jeeps, came to pay respects

Bonnie Alexander, 68, waves a peace sign at drivers in a motorcade of more than 200 Jeeps and some other vehicles toward a May 15 memorial service for Kendrick Castillo. Castillo “was an angel in our midst,” said Alexander, a Highlands Ranch resident.

Ellis Arnold

An Aurora police officer sits to keep traffic stopped as a motorcade of more than 200 Jeeps drove by for a May 15 memorial service for Kendrick Castillo.

Ellis Arnold

A processional of Jeeps rides through Highlands Ranch May 15 in commemoration of Kendrick Castillo, who had an affinity for cars, specifically his green Jeep Cherokee.

Nick Puckett

An undercover Douglas County Sheriff Jeep Cherokee leads a processional of Jeeps through Highlands Ranch to a celebration of life ceremony at Cherry Valley Community Church.

Nick Puckett

A poster on the grill of a Jeep reads "Jeep In Paradise Kendrick," commemorating Kendrick Castillo, who was killed during the May 7 STEM School Highlands Ranch shooting.

Nick Puckett

Friends of Kendrick Castillo prepare for a procession May 15 to commemorate him. From left to right, Joe Eriqat, Charles Burroughs, Michael Bodzianowski, Jack DeBeer.

Nick Puckett

Charles Burroughs, Sr., tapes a poster to the grill of a Jeep leading the procession in honor of Kendrick Castillo May 15. The sign reads "Jeep in Paradise Kendrick."

Nick Puckett

One of the more than 200 Jeeps that drove in a motorcade through a stretch of Highlands Ranch to Cherry Hills Community Church for a May 15 memorial service for Kendrick Castillo, the STEM School Highlands Ranch student who was killed in the May 7 shooting that wounded several others. “Convoy 4 Kendrick” was painted on this Jeep’s windshield. Castillo was known as a car enthusiast and loved his Jeep.

Ellis Arnold

A line of Jeeps and some other vehicles went by for nearly 20 minutes near Cherry Hills Community Church for a May 15 memorial service for Kendrick Castillo in Highlands Ranch.

Ellis Arnold

People lined up along the road hold up an American flag as a motorcade of more than 200 Jeeps drove by for a May 15 memorial service for Kendrick Castillo.

Ellis Arnold

A mother and daughter, who did not want to be named, stand along the road awaiting a motorcade of Jeeps driving to Cherry Hills Community Church for a May 15 memorial service for Kendrick Castillo. The sign they brought read, “We will never forget you,” “Thank you” and “Hero.”

Ellis Arnold

Bendor Shallow, right, and Connor LeFebre, with the guitar, stand in a line of Valor Christian High School students awaiting a motorcade to arrive at a May 15 memorial service for Kendrick Castillo. Shallow and LeFebre are on student council at Valor, which stands across the street from Cherry Hills Community Church, the service’s venue.

Ellis Arnold

Posted
Wednesday, May 15, 2019 1:53 pm

By Nick Puckett and Ellis Arnold

When Doug Till saw the television news about a Jeep processional to honor Kendrick Castillo, the 18-year-old who died while trying to protect other students during a shooting at his school, he decided he had to pay his respects.

"Our society is getting to where we have to lay down our lives to protect other people," said Till, who lives in Arizona but was visiting in Westminster, "and that’s what Kendrick did."

About 250 Jeep enthusiasts gathered in Highlands Ranch on May 15 to ride in a procession ahead of a celebration of life service for Castillo.

Vehicles came from outside the metro area, with some having Arizona, Wyoming and Utah license plates, to honor the teen killed in the May 7 STEM School Highlands Ranch shooting. ​He was one of three STEM students who reportedly subdued one of the shooting suspects.

Castillo was passionate about his green Jeep Cherokee and enjoyed working on cars, friends say.

"There’s probably 2 percent (of participants) that know the family, let alone Kendrick, but that’s what this Jeep community is about," said Doug McDowell of Highlands Ranch. "For me, it's for the family."

The Jeep lovers gathered at a spot about a mile away from Cherry Hills Communiity Church, where the celebration of life was to take place in the early afternoon. The Jeeps were escorted by Douglas County Sheriff's Office deputies on their ride to the church.

It's rare that a civilian receives a processional led by law enforcement, but officials said Castillo embodied the spirit of the officers by giving his life to protect others.

"For us, our sheriff wanted to honor Kendrick and the school, because it’s what we do. We’re here to protect people," said Tim Ralph, the Douglas County Sheriff's Office chaplain. "We have to say thank you."

About 20 students from Valor Christian High School — just across the street — walked over to line Grace Boulevard before the processional.

Bendor Shallow and Connor LeFebre, Valor sophomores, were among them.

We wanted to show "love in this community in the face of all this tragedy," said Shallow, standing beside a guitar-playing LeFebre, who sang songs of faith.

“We are disgusted by the behavior of the officers in Minnesota,” Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock told members of the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee. “Those were bad cops, and if they work for any sheriff in this room they would have been fired just the same.”